


Hero Worship

by zalil



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Light Dom/sub, M/M, Past Relationship(s), Snarry-A-Thon19
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-03
Updated: 2019-05-03
Packaged: 2020-02-10 13:49:55
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 14,051
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18661672
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zalil/pseuds/zalil
Summary: When Snape meets Potter a few years after the war, he is surprised to see that the little brat has come to be a strapping young lad with the muscles of an Auror and a command over his magical powers that makes Snape want to fall to his knees and worship him.





	Hero Worship

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks a lot to Badgerlady for the quick and awesome beta!
> 
> Prompt: No. 23 Power!kink. Severus has a thing for powerful men - not the usual sort, mind. He could care less who the Headmaster of Hogwarts is, or the Minister, for that matter. But powerful magic is another thing entirely. And Harry Potter has it in spades.

Severus Snape deeply regretted helping the Order bring about the demise of one Dark Lord. Certainly, his life had changed for the better, now that he didn't have to play ten different roles, depending on who he was talking to and pretending to side with. Also, not constantly fearing for his life every time he was summoned in case one of the other Death Eater bastards had – again – questioned his alliance, just because they wanted him out of the way of being the Dark Lord's confidant, had its perks. Sure, the killings of innocent Muggles, wizards and witches had declined to almost zero after the Dark Lord was gone and his many minions had been incarcerated. Indeed, the many wrongdoings of all his supporters – from Malfoy's brothels and illegal poison trade to the infiltration of the Ministry – had been thoroughly investigated and shut down. 

But Severus suffered and pitied himself above all other wizards, for right now a task lay before him that he wouldn't wish on his worst enemy: he had been 'recommended' to attend a Ministry function as a part of his parole. 

Bitterly, Severus thought about the other surviving Order members and how the end of the war had treated them. Most of them had gone on with their lives unimpaired and gained the social recognition of being the heroes of the second war. The golden trio had been awarded Orders of Merlin and promoted to Ministry jobs without even finishing their education. Kingsley had been elected Minister of Magic. Severus, on the other hand, the undercover agent who took the brunt of wartime, was thanked with a farce of a trial, a parole of three years and a parole officer to babysit him at regular intervals.

He fastened his dress robes and scowled at the mirror, which had long ago been hexed into refraining from giving its opinion on Severus' attire and facial expressions. A quick Tempus charm showed him the ceremony was due to start in half an hour. Enough time to finish his preparations and Floo into the Ministry on time. He was supposed to meet there with his parole officer, Ms. Whittaker, a young witch who had probably drawn the short straw when the job was assigned. She treated him decently, though, and didn't appear to be too intimidated by his demeanour. To her, Severus was just another person with a conviction who was assigned guidance and monitoring, and that suited him just fine. As a part of the parole, delinquents were strongly encouraged to show loyalty and support to the current government. In the last two years of his parole, Whittaker had left him alone mostly, but his luck was over. According to her, nothing said 'yea' to the Ministry more than publicly watching the unveiling of a monument for unity among wizards and listening to the Chosen One help speak the warding charm on it. 

Severus carefully stashed his wand in a secret pocket in his robes. With the threat of Voldemort and his followers eradicated, idiots had surfaced who thought Death Eater bashing was a fun activity for Saturday nights. Every now and again, attacks on former Death Eaters showed Mad Eye Moody's credo still applied. Severus patted down his robes a last time, then Flooed to the Ministry. 

Entering there, he saw a big crowd had already assembled. All around, people were standing in little groups, talking and laughing. He scowled. Potter and his entourage were already at the bar, chatting. It had been two years since Severus had seen them at the trials. They had grown up again. Granger had become curvier and finally managed to find an antidote to the shrub she called hair, although, her being in a relationship with Ronald Weasley, Severus didn't know why she bothered. Weasley was pillaging the buffet as if he were near starvation, shoving canapés into his mouth like a dying man. Of course, all eyes were on their saviour. His hair was still unruly as a pack of pixies but it seemed someone had forced him to visit an actual hairdresser who knew where to cut into the black mess.

When he turned and his red and gold Ministry robes moved, Severus could guess at the effect of the many hours of physical combat training the novices in the Auror department had to undergo. And time to work out he had, if one was to believe _Witch Weekly's_ news of his break-up with the Weasley girl. Since she had sailed off to play Quidditch internationally half a year ago, there had been no more reports of Potter's love life, though it was hard to believe he didn't have one, considering the reverent and adoring looks he attracted at the moment and generally. 

Kingsley stepped up to the cloaked monument that was supposed to be warded and cleared his throat. The chatter quietened and Potter made his way through the crowd to stand near him. The Minister greeted the guests, delivered a carefully written speech that was designed to offend nobody and not really say anything, and finally asked Potter to step forward. The veil was levitated from the abstract marble atrocity that was to be the new symbol for peace. Snape waited for the rest of the warding team, but nobody else appeared. Potter raised his wand and silence fell. He started to chant under his breath and a golden thread appeared from his wand and grew. The tension in the air was tangible. With every word Potter uttered, the golden thread elongated, connected and was woven into a large golden net that grew around the monument. 

Severus would not have admitted it for his life, but he was impressed. Normally, a warding of this complexity took the power of three wizards or witches at the very least. With a mind as erratic and volatile as Potter had shown during their Legilimency sessions, he could never have achieved such a feat. He seemed to have honed his ability to concentrate a great deal. The power he was exuding made Severus' skin tingle.

Finally, the net was completed and Potter let it set slowly. It sank into the monument, the marble glowed white for a moment, and the ward was done. The crowd broke into applause and appreciatory conversations started. Granger and Weasley hugged Potter, who didn't even look very drained from his exertions. Kingsley patted Potter's shoulder and talked amicably with him and his friends. Severus tore his eyes away from the Chosen One and let his gaze wander over the crowd. Finally, he spotted Whittaker at the far end of the hall and caught her eye. She seemed pleasantly surprised to see him and raised her glass to him. Severus nodded at her. 

He listened for a while to the dwarf band that had started torturing their instruments and waited for enough time to pass for Whittaker to be happy with his attendance and mention it in his case file. After a few minutes, Kingsley came over to Severus and shook his hand. 

"Good to see you, Snape," he said cordially. "Who the hell convinced you to attend a Ministry function tonight?"

He grimaced. "I believe it was one of your very own employees that insisted I take the opportunity to _socialise_." He spat out the last word in disgust and let his eyes flicker to Whittaker. Kingsley laughed. 

"I should give her a raise for achieving the impossible," he smiled. "How are you doing?"

"Fine," Severus answered curtly. "I'll be better when this charade of a parole is over."

"Not much longer and you'll be a free wizard again," Kingsley assured him and excused himself. Severus was inclined to believe his goodwill. Kingsley had always been one of his favourite Order members, as he had listened to reason and been cordial towards him. 

When Weasley and Granger decided to start dancing, he took that as his cue to say goodbye. He saw Potter hovering at the edge of the dance floor, looking dangerously close to coming over to talk to him. Even though they had exchanged a few civil words at the funerals after the battle of Hogwarts, they hadn't had any reason to talk beyond that. Potter had given him his memories back and Snape had thanked him. Relieved that the war was over and his duties fulfilled for once, he had refrained from explaining his relationship to Lily or offering to talk about her. There was no need to change that now.

Severus made his way to the fireplaces, passing a group of wizards that had just arrived and walked straight towards the bar. He recognised a former Hogwarts student a few years his senior, Sheppard. Already in school, Sheppard and his friends had had it in for Severus. Now that he had wheedled his way into a Ministry job in the Department of Intoxicating Substances, he kept on broadcasting his contempt for Severus, making it a point to observe his trial. Severus sidestepped him and made sure to cross Whittaker's line of sight on his way out.

Back at the Prince estate, Severus lit a fire. He tried to pour himself a drink, realised the bottle of firewhisky was empty, and sat in his armchair, cursing. Against his will, his thoughts wandered back to Potter. The brat probably didn't even know how extraordinary his display of magic had been today. The charm had been complex and needed lots of raw power. Harry Potter had it in spades, of course. It seemed nobody had advised him not to go advertising his powers like that. Gryffindors were innocent like that, but any wizard with a brain in his head knew not to seem like a threat to a society that had just got rid of its last Dark Lord. And a threat he could be. Who was to stop Potter, if he decided he wanted to become the leader? 

Severus imagined Potter in Voldemort's place, sitting on his "throne" in Malfoy manor as the Dark Lord had, giving out orders and making his followers kneel before him. Snape felt heat rise in his cheeks and his cock grow hard. He had to admit, all grown up with hard angles and determination in his eyes, Potter was more than a little attractive. Severus opened his robes, reached into his trousers and gave his cock a firm stroke. He imagined Potter making him kneel before him, enveloping him in his powerful magic and restraining him. Severus pictured Potter beckoning him closer, and himself sliding up to him on his knees, waiting for permission to open Potter's robes and take his cock into his mouth. He groaned. He shifted his hips to give himself better access and continued sliding his hand up and down the length of his cock, going faster until he was coming, ejaculate spilling over his fingers. Damn the Potter brat, continued bane of his existence. 

*

Damn Kingsley, continued bane of his existence, Harry thought, and looked in resignation at his desk, overflowing with files that had accumulated while he had taken the last days off to study with a wizard who helped him perfect his warding technique. When the Minister had asked Harry to do the honours at the warding, he had left his regular work for later and later was now. Another night of take-away Chinese and paperwork it was. 

After the war and the clean up, Harry had been happy Kingsley had become the new Minister for Magic. Kingsley understood what Harry and his friends had experienced during the war, knew they had acquired more skills than they could have in another year at school, and allowed them to transfer directly to Auror training. They didn't have to complete their education at Hogwarts, which aligned nicely with McGonagall's plan to have the students move on with their education. Not having Harry and his friends at Hogwarts helped them actually focus on their classes instead of on hero worship, everyone agreed. So Harry was grateful for Kingsley's help getting into Auror training. But for Harry, the training was challenging enough as it was. In the first months, the trainees were required to acquire work experience in all other departments. Then they had safety and strategy training, learned the Ministry regulations, duelled regularly and, which was most surprising for Harry, had lots of physical training. 

In addition to all that, Kingsley had Harry appear at every Ministry event that happened. Harry supported Kingsley's outlook on Wizarding society, knew the events were for a good cause, and wanted to do his part in reforming society as well as reforming the Ministry, but he also felt he deserved a little peace and quiet after defeating Voldemort. 

Harry opened the first file at the top of the pile and read the assignment Robards had written down for him. He was to make an appointment with a suspect of theft, interview them and write a report. Sighing, Harry drafted a standard invitation letter with an appointment and set it on the "owl later" pile on the cabinet to his left.

The next few assignments were about as interesting as the first. Harry arranged meetings, summoned reports to read, and wrote his own. About a quarter down the pile, he arrived at a report of a parole officer Robards had him proofread and, when approved, send to the archive. Harry started reading without much interest until his eyes flickered up to the line with the offender's name: _Severus Snape_. 

Harry had been a witness at Snape's trial. When the verdict had been spoken (unjustly so, Harry felt, since Dumbledore hadn't left Snape any alternative than to take part in Death Eater activities to stay in Voldemort's trust), Harry had pitied the poor soul who had to take on the part of Snape's parole officer. To his surprise, Kate, a young woman only a few years Harry's senior, seemed to get along swimmingly with him. Harry had spent some time with her in the first few weeks of his training and found her to be a capable, friendly young witch. Unlike some of the Ministry employees, she hadn't seemed starstruck by Harry Potter and he had been very grateful. Whatever she had done to make Snape tolerate her was a mystery, though. When Robards had assigned her Snape, the whole department – some of whom had experienced Snape's foul temper first hand in Potions class – had held its breath and everybody had waited for the first time an assignment would be handed back to Robards. But Kate had never tried to. 

Harry had been surprised as well. Either Snape was uncharacteristically afraid of violating his parole or the end of the war made that much of a difference. Harry supposed Snape had looked good at the warding, more relaxed than Harry had ever known him. As a teenager, Harry had known Snape had had a lot on his schedule, but now, as a full-time working adult, he could only wonder how Snape had done it. It had to affect him to be able to sleep full nights and that showed. Maybe that was the reason for his newfound balanced disposition. 

_In compliance with court ordered supervision, the offender concerned has kept all appointments. He appeared on time and willingly presented his wand for inspection. No traces of aggressive use of magic could be detected by a standard diagnostic spell (Cognosco). The offender concerned did not seem to be under any psychoactive drugs or spells. He appeared sober and of sound mind. There was no indication of endangerment to self or others. Concerning reparation and restorative justice, he procured three batches of Veritaserum, in accordance with contract no. 191956._

If the report was anything to go by, Kate and Snape did get along. Harry scratched his signature under Kate's and tapped the paper, which folded up once and sailed out of the door, towards the archive. 

Harry had to admit, he was curious about this new Snape. Since the trials, when Harry had realised the extent of Snape's devotion to their cause and that they had been working on the same side all along, he was a little embarrassed about his behaviour towards the man. The revelations at the trial – Snape's role in the war, his relationship to Dumbledore and Harry's mum – made him a lot more relatable to Harry. To Hermione and Ron's surprise, he had been tempted to go and talk to Snape at the warding event, but Snape had been gone before Harry could greet him.

*

"How's your potions business going?" Whittaker asked, turning her spoon in her hot chocolate. She had suggested a Muggle café instead of her office as their meeting point and Severus was equally as relieved to avoid the Ministry and some people working there as he was disappointed to avoid the Ministry and _some people_ working there. He looked at his folded hands on the table.

"Business is slow," he answered curtly, "Surprisingly, there aren't many people who would like to owl-order potions from a known former Death Eater."

Whittaker, to her credit, didn't seem daunted by his attitude. 

"Not even for poisons?" she joked.

Severus raised an eyebrow and almost smiled despite himself. "I was not aware the Ministry would condone such business. With your permission, I will expand my assortment of products." 

Severus knew Whittaker was assigned to him to help as well as control him and, from the beginning of their work liaison, she had been itching to accord him some war veteran allowance he was determined not to take. The fact that he had consented to procure a certain amount of potions for the Ministry in exchange for a shortening of his parole had only strengthened her resolve to do so. 

"Joking aside, I manage." he said in a tone that suggested the discussion of his finances was over. She narrowed her eyes but let it go. 

"There's a Ministry event the weekend after next and I have to help set up the place, so I'll have to move our appointment, I'm afraid," she said. 

"Kingsley doesn't seem to get enough of these," Severus commented snarkily. 

"I think it's brilliant; it's a charity event for children who have lost their parents in the second war. We'll try and relieve the aristocrat ladies and gentlemen of their burdening wealth."

She looked at him slyly. "It's not required of you to come, it'll be just a few war veterans and old wealthy ladies to sponsor the thing."

He knew exactly that she wanted him to go, but made it sound as though she didn't. Little did she know that a certain godfather of one war orphan had caught his interest. He would bet Potter would show up at the event and, even though he didn't think anything would come from it, he wanted to see him again. 

"I think I could be persuaded to come," he said loftily, "As you said, I should socialise more." 

"Wonderful." She beamed. "It will be great for your reputation. I'll put you on the guest list."

*

Harry, Ron and Hermione fell onto the couch in the Weasley-Granger household with three almost identical groans after their fortnightly hand-to-hand combat training. 

"Let's face it, Robards is trying to kill us by exhaustion," Ron sighed and summoned three bottles of beer from the refrigerator. Harry held his to his neck to cool down, then popped it open and took a swig. 

"It's working, as far as I can tell," he answered and tried not to think about the pile on his desk that was still waiting for him. There was always a pile. Whenever he found that he had almost got to the bottom of it after a day of twelve or more hours of work, it filled up overnight and he had to start again. It was probably just the result of understaffing, but it felt like a curse. 

Hermione drank, then sat up and set her beer on the table. "When was the last time you have eaten properly, Harry?" 

The silence while he counted the days backwards was enough answer for her, it seemed. She punched his shoulder half affectionately, half in scolding, and went to the kitchen to hunt for leftovers. 

"So, what's the plan for the weekend?" Ron asked.

"Teddy's visiting," Harry answered, dreading the enthusiasm the boy had for running up and down the corridors in his flat while having inherited his mother's clumsiness. "Later, I might pop into work to finish some things. Since we're going to be at the charity event next weekend, I should probably get a head start."

"We should move our beds to our offices," Ron joked and yawned. "I don't know why we're even paying rent, we're hardly ever here. Do we _have_ to go to the charity?"

"Andromeda and Teddy will come to inspire people to buy lots of tickets for the raffle. I've got to support my godson emotionally," Harry answered unhappily. Since he had set up an account for Teddy at Gringotts and transferred part of his earnings there each month, Teddy was not living in want, but Harry knew there were enough families that would benefit from the charity.

Hermione arrived from the kitchen with three bowls of what smelled of chili con carne and sat down between the men again. 

"Did I hear ‘Teddy’?" Hermione asked and heated the bowls with a tap of her wand. "How is he?"

"Lively," Harry smiled. "He talks a lot already and he's moving around the place at a speed you wouldn't believe. Andromeda has her work cut out for her. You should come over some weekend when he's visiting."

Hermione and Ron nodded and discussed dates for a while. When Ron mentioned Ginny was coming to visit on one of the next weekends, they suddenly fell quiet. They did that since Harry and Ginny's break up more than half a year ago. From the beginning, Harry had told them that avoiding the topic of his break up or Ginny or Quidditch was not necessary, but Hermione was adamant it was in bad taste to talk about someone's ex-partner in front of them. 

When Ginny's call to Germany's best Quidditch team had arrived, they had re-evaluated their relationship and found that they were more in love with the idea of having a family together than they were with each other. In the end, there hadn't been any more passion in their relationship at all. They had parted on good terms and agreed they wanted to stay friends.

"Don't be like that, I'm fine," Harry insisted and reached over Hermione to pinch Ron's side for emphasis. "How is she?"

"She's good, they promoted her from the back-up position to first Chaser," Ron told him proudly and swatted Harry's hand away. "She reckons they'll qualify for the World Cup next year."

"Great," Harry said, and meant it. "I'd like to see her when she's here."

"So," Ron started, his eyes darting to Hermione, then back to Harry, "how's your love life going? There must be a girl for you somewhere out there."

It seemed to be a topic they were discussing without him. Judging by the stern look Ron was receiving from Hermione, it seemed he was not supposed to be asking. Harry smiled. This must be what it was like to have annoying siblings that you loved.

"It's not going anywhere," Harry replied. "You know my work hours. I don't even know where to fit in a girlfriend at the moment."

He didn't offer more information, especially not on how after a little flirt with a neighbour he wasn't even 100 percent sure he was looking for a girl any more. 

*

Severus almost regretted his acceptance when he entered the Ministry again, far too soon for his taste. The crowd seemed similar to the one at the warding in its composition – a lot of Ministry personnel and wealthy, elderly ladies, though he recognised hardly any of them. As it was a daytime event, many of the younger guests were dressed in casual clothes instead of formal robes. Whittaker came over to him, blonde hair bouncing on her shoulders. Without being asked, she pointed out a few better-known people in the crowd. Severus listened – you never knew when that knowledge could be useful – but tuned her out when he saw Potter enter with a toddler's hand in his and a middle-aged woman by his side he recognised as Andromeda Tonks, a fellow Slytherin and ostracised daughter of the Blacks. This time, without focus on him, Potter seemed to feel more at ease. He talked to the boy, who was laughing and swinging their joined hands back and forth. 

Snape dimly noticed Whittaker excusing herself to talk to a colleague and nodded in her direction, eyes still on Potter, who ruffled the boy's hair that changed from blond to bright red. Of course the Chosen One was good with children. Severus held himself back from rolling his eyes.

When Potter realised he was being watched, Severus swiftly turned towards a floating tray and took a glass from it, but it had been too late. Potter extricated himself from the boy's grip, left him with his grandmother – in spite of the boy's protests – and started towards Severus. Never one to make it easy for Potter, Severus walked towards the buffet so that Potter had to follow him. Never one to give up easily, Potter followed. 

"Professor," he greeted him neutrally.

"Mister Potter," Severus answered in kind and let his gaze run over him for a moment. Like many others, Potter had foregone his robes today to appear in a dark green shirt that showed off the arm muscles he had acquired over the last years. He kept his hair a little longer again and an unruly black lock tickled his cheek. Potter pushed it behind his ear, but it tumbled back forwards. Severus felt a sudden irrational wish to tuck it back. He repressed the thought back into his unconscious, where it belonged, and caught Potter's deep green eyes. 

"You seem to have developed a taste for Ministry events," Potter said, smiling tentatively. He had grown up, Severus realised. He wasn't fidgeting, held his gaze, and waited in silence for his reply. All in all, he seemed calm and sure of himself. Only the hand wandering to his head and running through the mop of his hair betrayed a little nervousness. 

"I do love a good public event in the exact building where my latest humiliation took place," Severus responded drily, hinting at his trial. "The attendance of people I barely tolerate is just a bonus. And I did come freely; my parole officer never mentioned this event, even less hinted that it might be beneficial for me if my attendance were mentioned in her report."

Potter looked amused. "Yeah, I'm sure Kate is riding roughshod over you." 

Severus had forgotten Potter knew Whittaker and her friendly, sensible nature from the Ministry. Apparently complaining about her wouldn't get him any sympathy points. Potter dropped his hand from his head, wand- and wordlessly summoned a glass from a passing tray and grinned into it. Even though the muscles of Potter's arms moved beautifully under his shirt, Severus was diverted by the tendrils of irritation that built without a fault whenever he was talking to the brat. 

"You never tire of putting yourself blatantly on display for others, do you?" Severus commented. 

Potter looked puzzled, let his gaze run down his front, then turned it to Severus. 

"You think this is indecent?" Potter turned, showing off his black Muggle jeans that truly were a little indecent, the way they hugged his posterior.

Severus rolled his eyes. "Your wandless magic, idiot child."

"Idiot adult, now," Potter corrected him without taking offence. "What do you mean?"

"I mean that you could benefit from not showing off your enormous powers to a public who has just gotten rid of an evil overlord and might be a little bit tetchy around wizards who are so far above them in their magical abilities." 

Potter looked stumped. "Er – thanks?" he offered. 

"That was NOT a compliment!" Severus snapped. 

Potter shrugged doubtfully. "Sounded like one."

The little tendrils of irritation were growing into larger tentacles of exasperation and Severus had to grit his teeth to stop himself from verbally lashing out again. A worried look from Whittaker, who was standing nearby, had him calm down a little. He needed to get rid of that parole before he could hex Potter again.

"I know what you mean," Potter amended, "though I would like to see them try anything. Anyway, it's nice to hear you're still looking out for me." His eyes twinkled. 

"Always," Severus said, loading the word with sarcasm. 

Just then, Granger and Weasley entered and greeted the Tonks boy and Andromeda. Harry excused himself and joined them. While walking away, he turned around with a cheeky expression to see if Severus was watching him take his next glass from the tray with his hand, without magic. Severus rolled his eyes. 

Severus did actually socialise this evening, talking for a short time to Kingsley again, then Zabini and finally Draco, who had probably been sent by his parole officer as well. Nevertheless, the Malfoy heritage showed in his demeanour; he strutted around as if his father still owned the place and charmed his way through a crowd of elderly ladies towards Severus. After a few words they parted, in unspoken agreement that it was best if two former Death Eaters didn't stand together for long. Severus watched Potter talk to his friends, school mates and acquaintances, while the Tonks boy clambered up onto his shoulders, then down again. 

In the corner of his eye, Severus saw a group people approach him while he was standing in his corner. He turned his eyes towards them and recognised Sheppard and his cronies. Sheppard, to Severus' knowledge, had not been on the forefront of defeating the Dark Lord. It was surprising that he appeared at these events so regularly. Snape started for the exits to avoid any confrontation, but one of Sheppard's friends quickly stepped into his way, blocking his exit. Sheppard eyed him up, then stepped right into his personal space. 

"And who do we have here," he asked loudly enough for everybody to hear. Severus wondered if he could appear more like a Muggle film villain and decided not. 

"How dare you show your face here, Death Eater scum," Sheppard continued. 

The room fell silent except for some elderly ladies whispering in apprehension. Severus' wand hand twitched, but he held himself still. Sheppard was not worth risking his parole and Severus didn't believe he would hurt him in front of an audience – even he was not that imbecilic. 

"Sheppard, how very _nice_ to meet you," he said ironically. "Unfortunately, I was just on my way out, so we will have to catch up some other time."

He turned towards the Floo and was blocked again by two of Sheppard's friends.

"Stay right where you are, coward," Sheppard threatened. 

Somewhere in the back of the crowd, a child started to cry. Severus saw several people make their way towards him, the Chosen One at the forefront. Obviously enraged, Potter strode up and stood next to Severus, facing Sheppard. 

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Potter inquired. He seemed to try and look relaxed with his hands in his pockets, yet there were tiny golden sparks flying from him in anger. Severus felt the waves of energy coming from Potter and thanked God for his voluminous robes as he felt his cock harden at the display of power. 

"Potter, your concern is not necessary," Severus muttered, but the wizard didn't back off.

"This doesn't concern you, Potter," Sheppard agreed belligerently, tried to step forwards, and failed. Potter smiled obnoxiously, apparently working wandless magic to root him to the spot. Severus mentally crossed his fingers for Sheppard to further provoke Potter. 

"It does when you are harassing my friend and making my godson cry," Potter stated.

So Severus qualified as a friend now? He was fairly sure he had not been consulted on the state of their relationship. Snape's face felt hot from watching Potter defend him with a passion. 

"I didn't mean to – no offence to _you_ , of course-" Sheppard stuttered and waved at his friends to step down. Potter relaxed a little. 

"Let's forget all about this," Sheppard said with gritted teeth. 

"See that you don't," Potter snapped, but moved his fingers and Sheppard was released from his spell. He signalled his friends to leave and they walked towards the exits. As a parting shot, Sheppard mouthed _Coward_ at Severus as he slid into a fireplace. 

Potter walked over to Andromeda and took the boy onto his arm. The crowd started to talk again. Whittaker, who had stayed in the background for the time of Sheppard's display, approached Severus, asked whether he wanted to file a complaint against Sheppard – he didn't – and commended him on his restraint. Severus felt he had fulfilled his duty in coming to the event and, uncomfortable staying in the crowd that would talk about the incident all afternoon, he decided he wouldn't wait for the speeches and auction. He started towards the fireplaces. Before he could enter one, he heard footsteps approach and found Potter standing behind him. 

"You all right?"

Severus raised one eyebrow. "Thank you for your unnecessary help, Potter. I felt like a regular damsel in distress."

Again, Potter's newfound confidence showed and he snorted in amusement. When Severus turned to Floo away, he set a hand on his shoulder to keep him there. His fingers gripped Severus tightly and Severus fancied he could feel their heat though his robes.

"You think I was saving _you_?" Potter asked. "You'd have slaughtered him and it would have been on your permanent record, that's why I stepped in. Also, I don't like that prat."

A little mollified, Severus decreased the scowl. "I don't like being in anyone's debt."

"Then it's just as well that you saved my life and I'm way behind in repaying the favour," Potter said and rubbed the back of his neck. 

"Let's hope it won't be necessary you do," Severus said. "Friends, are we now?"

"Yes," Potter answered pertly.

"I see. Good evening, Mr. Potter."

"Good to see you, Professor," Potter said. 

Severus dropped the Floo powder and Potter disappeared behind green flames as he intoned, "Prince Manor."

*

This time, Severus skipped the firewhisky and the armchair by the fireplace and went straight to his bedroom. He tore off his robes carelessly and let them fall to the floor. Lying down on his bed, he got himself off in a few strokes, all the while thinking about Potter and the way his power crackled in little sparks when he was angry and didn't let it out. 

Severus knew he had an unhealthy habit of flocking towards powerful wizards, it was what had got him into the mess of becoming a Death Eater in the first place. His first object of worship had been Lucius, the attractive prefect who had welcomed him into Slytherin house. Lucius had not only been powerful with his magic, he had had a way of cunningly charming everyone into getting what he wanted. He had pretended to be interested in Severus and slowly seduced him to the Dark side. It hadn't taken much more than a few handjobs from the handsome wizard for the teenage Severus to say yes to meeting the monster Voldemort had turned out to be. 

At the time, Severus had been excited to see a wizard that was so powerful, even Dumbledore had feared him. The Dark Lord had been seductive in his own way, comparing the half-blood Snape to himself and promising him the world at his feet. Everybody knew how that had turned out. After that, there had been no alternative but to replace one powerful lunatic with a less deadly powerful lunatic. 

Severus had thought he was over his habit, but it was just his luck that the bane of his existence turned out to be a God of Magic.

*

Harry was still thinking about Snape when he returned home. He wondered why he had never realised how funny Snape was while he had been in school. Sure, Snape was funny in a sarcastic, condescending, pessimist kind of way, but he did have a sense of humour and it was improbable he had developed it as recently as the past three years.

Entering his bedroom, Harry dropped his clothes wherever they fell when he took them off and changed into a comfortable t-shirt and sweatpants. He returned to the kitchen and made a cup of tea. 

Dipping the teabag into his cup of hot water, he thought about how normal a conversation he had managed to have with Snape. Snape had only seemed close to hexing him once, which was great by their record. On a more scary note, Harry was ninety percent sure Snape had checked him out. The fact that Snape might find him attractive wasn't bothering him. What made it disconcerting was that he found he didn't mind at all. Harry was not sure he wanted to explore that more deeply.

Maybe Harry was so underfucked that he was reading into things. The last time with Ginny had been quite a few months ago. He hadn't put himself on the market after the break up because he thought a relationship should develop naturally. Since he hadn't been in the mood to go to the lengths necessary to not be in the papers with his partner for a little meaningless sex, there had been none of that, either. There had been that little flirt with Sam, a nice Muggle who lived near Harry and used the same running trail, but Harry had been too chicken to take him up on his explicit offer. 

Harry curled up on his couch with his cup and turned on the TV, but didn't actually follow the programme. His mind was still on the Ministry event. Harry had been pleasantly surprised that Snape hadn't started an argument about whether they qualified as friends. He knew very well that had been a bit of an exaggeration, but it had done the trick with Sheppard.

Harry wished Snape's parole to be over soon. At the moment, Snape reminded him of a wolf with a muzzle. And Sheppard was just the kind of idiot who took advantage of his restrictions and kicked him. Why he thought he had the right to do so after all Snape had done for all of them, Harry didn't know. Also, it was short-sighted, as one day soon, Snape would lose his muzzle and be able to fight back. Harry was looking forward to that. 

*

Severus started the next day as he did every day, with the _Daily Prophet_ lying in front of him while he drank strong, black tea. Afterwards, he went for a few hours into the small laboratory he had set up in the manor for brewing the required potions for the Ministry and a few new potions his regulars bought from him per owl order, and experimenting on improved formulae to offer to apothecaries. With his reputation, he knew they would only buy from him if he offered significantly better products than other Potions Masters. 

After his morning brewing, Severus took stock of his storage room and realised that he was close to running out of some ingredients he couldn't collect himself. He sighed. Going out shopping meant subjecting himself to the stares of distaste of those who remembered him from the Dark Lord's reign, the suspicious looks of those who had read the slanderous articles the _Daily Prophet_ had published about him, and once in a while the smitten adoration of the odd girl who had decided he was a misunderstood hero. Still, it was not to be helped. Until his new 'friendship' with Potter made it into the press and improved his standing, he had to grit his teeth and get on with it.

When he had finished his brewing and prepared and eaten a small lunch, he took off for Slug and Jiggers' Apothecary. The last time he had been there, they had seemed reluctant, but sold him what he needed. It was preferable to visiting the apothecary on Knockturn Alley where, as a traitor to the Dark Lord, he would be chucked out with an insult and a hex – if he was lucky. 

He apparated to Diagon Alley and walked a short way to the shop. The bell chimed as he stepped into it and adjusted his eyes to the darker room. The bright light that fell through the front window only reached the various shiny metal appliances for weighing and preparing potions ingredients that were displayed in the window. When no one appeared, Severus cleared his throat. A small mouse of a man shot out from the back of the shop and towards the till.

"Ah, Master Snape, back so early?" he simpered and busied himself with needlessly moving around some quills and ink pots next to the till. 

Severus gritted his teeth. "Master Jiggers. As the ingredients – inconsiderately, I might add – do not multiply in my cabinet, I have to resort to restocking once in a while."

He handed Jiggers his prepared list, which held animal ingredients such as boomslang skin, Occamy eggshells and lacewing flies. Most of the plants he needed he collected on his own in the part of the Forbidden Forest that extended beyond Hogwarts.

Jiggers looked at the list, shuffled his feet and scratched his chin.

"Ah... unfortunate, hmm… impossible,… tsk tsk tsk…" he murmured while stroking his short, patchy grey beard.

Severus waited in relative patience for a few seconds, then, when Jiggers did not move, spoke. "Well?"

Jiggers dragged up the corners of his mouth in a grimace that probably should have been a smile, but ended up more like a baring of his teeth. 

"I'm afraid," he said, "we are out of those ingredients at the moment, Master Snape."

Severus raised one eyebrow. "You mean to tell me you are out of ingredients so basic, a trained troll could provide them? When will they be in stock again?"

"I'm not sure, it could be next week, or – maybe – next month, but I cannot promise…"

Severus let his hand fall on the counter and Jiggers jumped. 

"When?" Severus demanded. 

The doorbell chimed. 

"Look, Snape, you're bad for business," Jiggers started, then realised who had entered, shut up and turned towards the new customer. "Mister Potter! Welcome to my humble shop!"

Severus sighed. Of course it was him again. Since he didn't want Potter to witness this new humiliation, he decided to take his leave and hope he hadn't heard too much already. He snatched back his list from Jiggers' hand, who didn't pay him attention any more, and turned to the door.

"Snape, my friend," Potter intoned with exaggerated joy, took his hand and shook it enthusiastically. "I saw you through the window and thought, what a nice coincidence. Don't let me interrupt your shopping," he said, and looked at Severus with imploring eyes. Severus made a _be my guest_ gesture with his hand, inviting Potter to the counter. 

"You're not interrupting, Potter. As Mr. Jiggers just explained, they are out of any and every ingredient I was planning to buy."

"Regrettably!" Jiggers exclaimed, blanching as he realised he had just tried to get rid of one of Potter's friends. 

Potter looked at Jiggers with a positively Slytherin glint in his eye. "It is surprising to hear you are out of ingredients for the first time in several decades."

"Yes, yes, surprising! Horrible planning!" Jiggers lamented. 

A little amused now, Severus watched the scene unfold. 

"Though, maybe, you just didn't look properly in your storage room, right?" Potter went on. He took his wand out of his pocket demonstratively, obviously showing he was taking Severus' advice from the day before.

"I'll be glad to assist you."

Potter looked at the list Severus was still clutching, summoned the items one by one, caught them as they were zooming in from storage and let them fall onto the counter they were standing at. Jiggers looked ready to be swallowed by the ground. 

Severus noticed Potter was holding his wand backwards and rolled his eyes. The brat was incorrigible.

"My friend here won't have any trouble purchasing these ingredients, will he?" Potter asked pleasantly. 

"Not at all, Mr. Potter, not at all!" Jiggers simpered. "On the contrary, he will get a 13.7 percent discount and we hope he'll come back to shop at Slug and Jiggers soon!"

Severus paid while Potter waited by his side and watched Jiggers, who was so uncomfortable that he kept dropping the Knuts and Sickles of Severus' change. Finally, Severus and Potter left. 

"What a tosser," Potter stated, when the shop door had shut. 

"Again with the saving, Potter?" Severus asked snidely. 

"Guess I can't kick the habit." Potter shrugged and smiled.

"Again, your meddling has been as unfortunate as it has been unnecessary," Severus said and held out his hand. 

"Good to see you too," Potter said fondly and shook it. 

*

Severus took to fantasising about Potter and about being saved by him again. Sometimes, he imagined Potter's absurdly great powers flowing from his nearly naked, muscular arms, to smite down any adversary that approached them when they were casually out. Sometimes, he imagined Potter's red and gold robes flying in the wind as he was fighting on the battlefield, wand in hand and sweat running down his neck. One night, with his slick hand on his cock, stroking slowly, Severus realised one thing: Potter did have a habit (some would say problem) of saving people and would always come to 'save' Severus, should he notice any trouble. Sheppard, on the other hand, had practically been begging for a fight at the last Ministry ceremony. All Severus had to do was to make sure that Potter was present the next time he met Sheppard again. 

Severus had not been a spy for nothing. He was lucky that Potter, Sheppard and Whittaker all three worked in the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, which made it easier to snoop around under cover of being a dutiful probationer. He arrived early to his next appointment with Whittaker to have time to investigate, slunk around the offices on level two of the Ministry and quickly located the lunch room. Standing outside, he cast a spell to amplify the voices of the staff on their break and listened to their chatter. Severus knew from Kingsley's reports that the Aurors' office had its own closed-off space and, as such, was not surprised he didn't hear Potter or Weasley talk. Also, Auror trainees were not known for having time to eat. 

While most of the workers talked about their weekends and the loads of work that accumulated because of the Ministry's traditional understaffing, Severus did hear a few colleagues talking about going for a pint after work. Unfortunately, he neither recognised any of the speakers, nor heard a name of a pub. When it seemed the lunch break was ending, Severus took off to the waiting area lest he run into Sheppard without Potter present.

Whittaker came from the direction of the lunch room a few minutes later and, when she saw Severus, waved him to come into her office early. 

As usual, she prepared tea while Severus set his wand onto the table. When she had set both of the mismatched cups down between them, he poured the milk while she ran the standard spells over his wand. 

"All clear," she declared and started to rummage around in her drawers until she found a pack of shortbread, ripped it open and offered it to Severus, who declined.

"So, how are you?" Whittaker asked and wiped her desk with her sleeve, trying to contain the crumbs on her work space and only succeeding in spreading them over her clothes as well as the files lying on the side of the desk.

"Fine," Severus responded. 

"Three more months, then you'll be free of me," Whittaker announced, smiling at him. She realised she was fighting a losing battle against the crumbs and vanished them with a flick of her wand.

"And you of me," Severus replied and inclined his head a fraction. They had an understanding about their work relationship but Whittaker knew how much he liked his freedom and independence. 

"I'm sorry about the incident at the charity thing," Whittaker said. "Marcus shouldn't be so hostile. Kudos to you for not hexing him into next week." 

Severus schooled his features into a look of disinterest. 

"Thank you, Ms. Whittaker. I am not especially keen on meeting him again, though it's hard to avoid someone whose whereabouts one does not know."

Whittaker shook her head. "You shouldn't have to! He's been hard on the Malfoy boy as well, I've heard. I'll have a word with Robards about how to handle him."

"You needn't," Severus replied hastily. "I'll manage. All I have to do is avoid the Ministry except for our meetings. Apart from that, I am rather sure we do not frequent the same venues."

"It might be better if you would avoid the Bear and Hog in the next months or so," Whittaker said reluctantly. "It's the place he goes to have a pint after work. If he ever gives you trouble again, though, please send a Patronus to the MLE instead of hexing him into tiny bits."

Severus thanked her for her support. It had been a long time since he could rely on somebody else for anything and he had a feeling Whittaker would provide help if he asked, not that he was intending to accept it. Also, she had disclosed the last bit of information he had been hoping for. Now there was only the problem of how to get Potter to the Bear and Hog. 

*

Severus Snape could be a patient wizard if he wanted. He was aware that it would be unwise to act too soon after talking to Whittaker about the exact pub he intended to meet Sheppard in, so he waited. And waited. And waited a little more. In the meantime he made do with his fantasies about Potter. Snape knew his "plan" to goad Potter into showing his power was childish, selfish and bound to spectacularly fail, but whenever these thoughts surfaced, he introduced them to his new bottle of firewhisky.

In the end, Severus didn't have to intervene much. Walking past the Bear and Hog, he discovered a leaflet for a midweek special offer of beer and something they probably called food. He made sure the leaflet made its way into the lunch room of the MLE and into Ronald Weasley's office, where it was charmed to dance the macarena to get his attention. 

On Wednesday, Severus took the afternoon off work, had a bath and dressed in a simple black shirt, black trousers and a light robe on top. He felt like a teenager before his first rendezvous. 

The sun was just setting and the streets were full of people strolling around in the still warm autumn air when Severus appeared in an alley near the Ministry. A light notice-me-not spell later, he was free to look for a place to wait until the right target came along. Severus found a bench not far from the entrance of the Bear and Hog and sat. 

It seemed the younger people were, the later they were going out. After quite some time of sitting around and watching Muggles and wizards of decreasing age pass by, Severus recognised two of Sheppard's friends in a group of people that entered the pub. Only seconds later, Weasley and Granger apparated directly in front of the door and walked in. When they disappeared into the pub, Sheppard turned around a corner with a friend, as if choreographed. Severus took off his spell, stood and walked around the bench to cross Sheppard's line of sight. 

Sheppard was so focussed on the pub, he nearly missed Severus. When Severus turned sharply and made his robes billow, the movement seemed to snap him out of his concentration and the slight widening of his eyes indicated recognition. He prodded his friend in the side with his elbow and whispered to him. Severus' sneer seemed enough of an invitation to him to take the Snape-bashing into a second round. They turned and walked towards Severus, Sheppard's hands in his pockets where, no doubt, his wand was hidden. He stood in front of him, close enough that Severus would have taken his own wand in hand, had he not had a different plan. Sheppard's friend stayed in the background, watching them with a little unease. 

"So, let's settle our unfinished business..." Sheppard taunted. "This time, there's no hero around to save the day, though…"

It was true, there was no hero around _yet_. But if the golden duo's presence in the pub was any indication, he would appear any time. Severus smirked at Sheppard and gave him a little shove, so he stumbled a few feet back. 

"I am sufficiently sure I can handle a little thug like you," Severus mocked him, cheering internally when Sheppard's face went beet red and he raised his wand at Severus. 

"Resorting to fisticuffs like a dirty half-blood, huh?" Sheppard growled angrily. "Fight like a wizard, you coward!"

Severus couldn't believe his plan had worked out so far. Sheppard was following the script as if Snape had written it down and owled it to him. He was rising to the bait as intended. Now, Potter's appearance would be convenient, as Severus was not sure how he could slow down Sheppard once he was sufficiently enraged. 

For now, Severus was still in control, though. Sheppard was so angry, he was broadcasting his intentions loudly, and Severus didn't need to use much Legilimency to read his intentions. He gripped his own wand and slid it out of his robe. Some people were noticing their confrontation and hurried up, passing them quickly.

"Being your mother's son, you would know all about dirty half-bloods," Severus jeered and elegantly sidestepped a stinging hex from Sheppard. 

"I bet she is really proud you managed to raise consuming alcohol to a profession," Severus went on, trying to find his weak spots.

Sheppard's expression darkened even more and he visualized a leg locker curse before he cast it. Severus let it strike him and concentrated on keeping his wand in hand as it hit home. The people around them started muttering and crossing the street to avoid getting mixed up in the fight. A new group of people entered the pub. Severus thought he saw another flash of ginger in the group.

Sheppard approached him and gave him a shove to the side, so Severus reeled and fell onto his knees. Sheppard stood over him, twirling his wand in his fingers, seemingly in a better mood.

"You shouldn't forget who you are and where you belong," he said cryptically, grabbed Severus' left arm hard, and shoved shirt and robe up to look at the faded Mark. When he took a key out of his pocket and transfigured it into a knife, Severus briefly wondered if his plan had been a sensible idea. Potter's prospective arrival grew more convenient every second. Still, whatever Sheppard had in store for him wouldn't faze Severus. He still had his wand and he had withstood the Dark Lord's torture on several occasions in the past. Sheppard most likely didn't have the imagination necessary to raise a good torturing to an excellent one. 

When Severus wondered if he should risk letting Sheppard disarm him (in years of training, Severus had managed to attain the ability to summon his wand to his hand), he heard the sound of wood crashing into stone. Suddenly a wind started blowing and a static filled the air as if a storm had arrived. Severus' lip curled in triumph. He knew that familiar current of magic. 

It took Sheppard a few moments to determine what was happening. When he turned around to look, Potter walked up to them, cracking the joints in his neck. Sheppard looked sufficiently aggressive, knife in hand, that Potter got the right impression. Severus slipped his own wand into his pocket again and watched Potter in anticipation. 

Sheppard's friend tried to step into Potter's way and was knocked back without Potter raising a finger. He went on, seemingly unperturbed and paying no mind to the man. Severus licked his lips. This was what he had wanted to see. 

"Been enjoying yourself, Sheppard?" Potter called in fake pleasantry. 

Sheppard blanched and let the hand gripping the knife fall to his side. 

Potter tipped his head to the side and a squeak could be heard. Sheppard screamed and let the rat that had once been the knife that had originally been a key fall and it ran away in terror. Good luck finding the little rodent when Sheppard wanted to open whatever lock was closed by that key.

Sheppard shifted his wand into his wand hand and faced Potter. Severus could hardly believe anyone could be as stupid as that. 

"Expelliarmus," he shouted and Severus watched in arousal as Potter flicked his head to the side and the spell went into nothingness. 

"Stupefy," he tried again and Potter stepped to the side and walked farther towards him. 

"Petrific-" he started, but Potter raised his hand and he was cast backwards and fell onto his arse. Severus felt shivers running down his spine. Potter looked impressive and, to Severus, delectable. His wild hair was sticking up in places, he had a determined look in his eyes, and his mouth was set in a grim smile. 

"Stu-" Sheppard tried anew, but Potter disarmed him with a wave, grabbed him and shook him.

"Fuck off now and make sure you're gone fast," Potter murmured, barely audible to Severus. "There will be an official report and, if I see you harassing Snape one more time, you'll be very sorry." 

Potter's eyes were glittering, the static in the air crackled. He let Sheppard go, who fell back limply onto the street. Severus could see the adrenaline running through Potter's veins. His hands were shaking a little. He was clearly trying to suppress his anger and it came out in tiny sparks that flew around him and evaporated.

With effort, Sheppard shuffled upright, wand still in hand, and limped over to his friend. Together, they walked away, grumbling to themselves. Potter watched until they disappeared around the corner, then turned, walked towards Severus and stopped in front of him. Severus swallowed. As he was still kneeling, his head was at the height of Potter's waist. Silently, he looked up at Potter. 

Potter took out his wand at last and ended the leg-locker-curse on Severus. He dragged him to his feet and around a corner into the next alley – not the one Sheppard had disappeared in – and shoved him against the wall. After a quick privacy charm he set his hard gaze on Severus. 

"What the hell do _you_ think you're doing around Sheppard again? Do you have a death wish?" he snapped. 

Severus adopted a dismissive look. "I am allowed to walk on the street," he started, but Potter interrupted him.

"Why didn't you defend yourself at all?" he demanded, running his hand through his mop of hair that was, as ever, sticking up in all directions. Severus found he was distracted from the question by Potter's agitation, his hard breathing and the pink tongue darting out to lick his lips. If somebody had told Snape decades ago, that someday, he would be admiring James Potter's son, he would have hexed them. Now, he had to concentrate on his facial muscles not to drool onto his robes. He looked up from Potter's wet lips to his eyes and found him staring at him in bewilderment. 

Unconsciously, Severus imitated Potter, licked his lips and found Potter staring at him as he did. Severus could see that there was still adrenaline coursing through Potter's veins without an outlet. Under his robes, Severus was rock hard. When there was silence between them except for the heavy breathing, and they were staring at each other, Severus decided to take a risk. 

He sank to his knees, pushed Potter's robes to the side and looked up at him for permission. Potter watched him, flabbergasted, obviously not understanding what was happening at first. When Severus set his hands on his belt buckle, waited and raised an eyebrow, Potter's face coloured in comprehension. Surprisingly, he didn't object, but gave a small nod. Severus shoved Potter, so that he had his back against the wall. Opening Potter's trousers and pulling them down a little with his briefs, he realised Potter was already half hard and rising.

He shuffled a little closer, then kept his eyes on Potter's as he took all of his cock into his mouth. Potter's mouth formed into an "o" as he watched him, but he kept quiet except for a deep sigh. When Severus started sucking, Potter's back arched and he moved his hand to Severus' head softly, then away again. Severus caught Potter's hand with his and set it on his head. Potter gripped his hair tightly and Severus moaned. The small, dirty sounds of him sucking the Chosen One off in an alleyway behind a pub where his friends waited for him were almost too much for Severus. Should Potter's privacy charm fail, anyone passing the alley would be able to see him on his knees. Severus felt his cock leak from his intense arousal and opened his own trousers. Desperate for some friction, he took his own cock in hand and stroked in time with his head bobbing on Potter's. Severus was close already. He watched Potter, slumped against the wall, eyes closed. The vibrations of Severus' moans called forth small sounds of his own. His breathing seemed to quicken and his hand tightened in Severus' hair. Potter's breath hitched and he stiffened all over as Severus felt his tangy fluid shoot into his throat. He swallowed and kept his mouth on Potter's cock until it had stopped dripping. Then he let go and quickly brought himself to completion in a few strokes, still kneeling in front of Potter, who had opened his eyes again and watched in awe. 

When he had caught his breath, Severus tucked himself back into his pants, straightened his clothes and rose to his feet. Potter had properly dressed again as well, but still looked and smelled like sex. His pupils were blown wide and he was flushed all over. Severus felt a "what are we doing – let's talk about this"-moment coming to the Gryffindor and so, after a nod and a curt, "See you, Potter," he disapparated home to the Prince estate. It didn't take him long to find his Pensieve and drag out the memory of what had just happened to relive it again and again until he was sore and tired. 

*

Harry went back into the pub and spent a short evening with his friends, dissociating from everything that had transpired outside. He told Ron and Hermione that he had broken up a fight, but not who had been fighting. He probably should tell them before they heard it from other sources in the Ministry and started thinking there might be more to the story if Harry withheld information. After getting to know a few colleagues from other departments and catching up with Ginny, who had joined them for the evening, Harry took the chance to leave at the same time as she did and apparated home.

Taking off his belt, Harry was reminded of his encounter with Snape. He had found himself in situations that involved Snape being mistreated in some sort of way suspiciously often lately. Seeing Sheppard attacking Snape _again_ had blown a fuse in Harry's head. 

Harry had never seen Snape let anyone help him and now Harry had come to his rescue three times in a short amount of time and lived to tell the tale. It still wasn't clear to Harry why Snape hadn't defended himself at all. When he had pushed him to answer, still full of adrenaline, he never would have imagined Snape acting as he had done. Seeing Snape drop to the floor, he had at first thought he misinterpreted the situation, waited for him to tie his shoe and stand back up. Also, he would never have imagined himself reacting as he had. When he had realised what Snape was intending, his submission made Harry hard in a second.

He entered the bathroom and started to brush his teeth, staring at himself in the mirror.

Thinking back to seeing Ginny again, Harry realised that, while he had always had a feeling of love for her and probably always would, he had never felt passion like that with her. He had never been as turned on in his life as he had been with Snape on his knees before him. Harry let his head fall against his bathroom cabinet and wished his life to be easier.

Harry wondered when he would see Snape again. While they seemed to meet a lot by chance lately, they had no common ground any more, now that both had left Hogwarts. Hunting for a headache potion in his cabinet, Harry remembered Kate talking about Snape running an owl order for potions. If he wanted a reason to see him again, all he had to do was a little research. He summoned a piece of parchment and his quill and scribbled down a little note.

_Ask Herm potions that can't be owled_

*

Due to his encounter with Sheppard, Whittaker had brought Severus' appointment with her forwards to a week after the incident. It turned out Sheppard had developed an addiction not only to alcohol, but also to Felix Felicis. The idea of being able to take on the saviour of the Wizarding world had been the outcome of mixing the two. Whittaker seemed to think that the Felix Felicis was responsible for Severus and Sheppard meeting so often lately, and he was happy to let her believe it. 

"He's been suspended for now and moved to St. Mungo's for his detoxification," Whittaker told him as she poured the tea. "I've prepared a form for you to fill out about the assault. Harry has already handed in his."

They continued the meeting as usual, with Severus pouring the milk while Whittaker inspected his wand. 

"In his report, Harry has commended you on your _extraordinary_ restraint," Whittaker commented. 

The silence she kept after her comment made Severus wonder which house she had been in at Hogwarts. He didn't remember her being one of his little snakes. Despite her Slytherin conversation skills, he didn't let himself be goaded into explaining anything. Finally, she relented. 

"As have I. In combination with your timely potions delivery, it makes for a report of excellent cooperation. I'll be recommending an early termination of your parole, a month ahead of schedule."

"Thank you," Severus answered, surprised. He had not known it was possible to be released early and certainly hadn't expected his childish plot to turn out this way. 

"Moreover, the Ministry is very happy with your potions and would like you to keep delivering them," she continued, smiling, "for a usual market price, of course."

That was good news indeed. The standard potions the Ministry used were costly and a steady income of those could make Severus' potions business profitable. Judging by her smile, Whittaker had something to do with this arrangement. 

Surprised and pleased with the outcome of their meeting, Severus left the Ministry in high spirits, not caring about the bustle in the entry hall where all Ministry employees seemed to have converged to run around and chat. All except the Aurors. 

Severus' thoughts wandered to his favourite Auror. They hadn't met again after the incident and he was not sure what to expect from Potter if they did. He was sure of what he wanted, though. He didn't want to see Potter exert his power any more, he wanted to feel it, his magic and his hands, on himself. Potter's hand in his hair while he sucked him off had aroused him more than anything else in his life and he had wished he had pulled harder, taken control, held his head while he fucked his mouth. 

While it had always been easy to rile Potter up in the past, lately Potter seemed to think they were friends. It would be harder to make him use his magic on Severus in an aggressive way. Also, now that Potter knew Severus' history with Lily and his role in the war, he was unlikely to raise to any bait. Severus' heart wasn't really in it, either. He found he didn't want to provoke Potter into using his magic on him. But that left only the most drastic of measures and Severus didn't know if he was quite as daring as that: asking for it. 

When he arrived home, Severus found a black owl sitting on the ledge of a window. When it spied him, it tapped insistently on the glass and shook its leg and an attached letter at him. Severus immediately recognised the scrawly handwriting. Like master, like man, Severus thought, looking at the overexcited owl. The letter was from Potter, nonchalantly ordering a potion as if he did so all time. And—Severus wondered if he had done his homework and intended it—it was a potion that couldn't be sent by spell or owl; he would have to collect it. 

*

Snape had left his wards open for Harry, so he could walk straight into Prince Manor when he arrived. On the ground floor, one door was open. Harry heard sounds coming from there and looked in, finding the laboratory. He leaned on the frame and watched Snape work. There was something achingly familiar, yet completely different, about the sight of him standing over a cauldron, brewing in concentration. 

"Hey," Harry said a little shyly, but with determination.

Snape looked up for a second from his potion and nodded at him, then looked down again and counted as he turned his ladle in the crimson liquid. After twenty turns, it suddenly lightened and turned clear. 

Snape tapped the cauldron with his wand to turn off the heat and stood. Slowly, he took off his brewing gloves. His dark eyes were boring into Harry's, who met his gaze unflinchingly.

"It needs to cool, " Snape said in a low voice. "Tea?"

Harry nodded and was led into the drawing room, which was surprisingly light and friendly. Heavy emerald curtains were pulled back to let the evening sun in. The whole colour scheme matched Slytherin house, Harry noticed. On a coffee table between a grey sofa and an armchair, a tea set was prepared. Harry wished Hermione was there to tell him where he was supposed to sit. He realised that, at some point, he had overtaken Snape, stopped and turned around to wait for Snape to indicate his place. 

Turning around, he came face to face with Snape, who had been right behind him. Up close, Snape looked more approachable than Harry had imagined. There were a few lines on his face – one of which was probably named after himself, Harry thought with a bad conscience – and Harry spied a few light freckles along his nose. When he looked up, Snape's eyes were staring into his, glinting. He licked his lips and Harry became aware of how close they were. The tension between them was palpable. It would only take a little sway forwards for their mouths to meet. 

Harry, ever the Gryffindor, swayed.

Snape met him in a surprisingly soft kiss, moving his lips slowly. Harry closed his eyes, reached out with his hands and was enveloped his Snape's arms. He was stunned how, for all the clashes they had always seemed to naturally gravitate towards, they were perfectly in tune in this. Harry's heart beat loudly and he opened his mouth as Snape deepened the kiss. 

A jolt of arousal shot down Harry's nether regions when he felt Snape's tongue on his. He moved one leg between Snape's and nestled up against him like a cat. Snape smelled like sandalwood and black tea, Harry thought, opening his eyes again as he felt Snape pull back. He looked flushed and out of breath. It was a good look on him.

Thoroughly out of his depth, Harry wondered what Snape expected of him. If there was any etiquette about fake potions collecting as a set-up for sex, he wasn't aware of it. Also, the more he thought about it, the more he realised he knew next to nothing about what gay wizards did together for fun.

"What would you-" he started but was cut off by Snape.

"Read my mind," Snape said cryptically. 

Harry ran his hand through his hair. "I'm not really good at guessing," he said. 

Snape shook his head. "Legilimency, Potter. Do read my mind."

Harry concentrated on the spell he had heard Snape say so many times during his fifth year at Hogwarts and looked into Snape's eyes. 

"Legilimens," he whispered and his mind was flooded with pictures – moving pictures – of himself and Snape, and he understood.

*

Severus took a leap of faith and willed his fantasies about Potter and his power to the forefront of his mind. He concentrated hard on what he wanted Potter to see. Potter's eyes unfocused as he looked into Severus' mind. After a few seconds something like recognition passed over his features and he disconnected from their link. 

Potter sat down on the sofa and leaned back. 

"Kneel," he said softly and Severus, feeling his knees weaken, did. 

Potter was learning fast, he thought as he watched the brat serve himself tea while his own knees chafed on the hard wooden floor. 

After he had set down the pot on the table again, Potter watched his left hand with interest while he let sparks fly from it. Severus felt himself blush from arousal. Potter gave a little wave and Severus' over-robe vanished into thin air, only to appear again in Potter's hand. He set it on the arm of the couch and drank again.

With only his shirt and waistcoat, Severus felt exposed; at the same time, he wished Potter would go on. As if Potter could still read his mind, he crooked his index finger and the topmost button of Severus' waistcoat popped open. Potter opened one button after another and left him waiting in between. 

When the waistcoat was fully open, Potter waved him closer and Severus shuffled up to him. It was so close to what he had imagined in his fantasies, his cock was already straining against his trousers. When he had arrived at the sofa, Potter bent down, vanished the waistcoat and ripped his white shirt open in one fell swoop. 

Severus lowered his eyes as his torso was exposed and Potter inspected the scars on his chest. His hair was pushed back as Potter pressed an open-mouthed kiss to his neck. When he moved his arms to touch Potter, Potter waved his hand and Severus' shirt slid back, wrapped around his wrists and trapped them behind his back. 

"Come up," Potter ordered. He complied and sat on the couch next to him, arms still behind his back. Potter kissed him again, insistently, bending him backwards, since he couldn't use his hands to hold himself steady. He had a feeling Potter was doing it on purpose, as well. 

When Severus was fully leaning back against the armrest of the couch, Potter made his hands spark again and started to explore Severus' body. The magic made his touch tingle and prickle against Severus' neck, down to his nipples, then further down his abdomen. 

"Go on," he urged Potter, but the brat just smiled and detoured to his back. 

When he seemed to be satisfied, he leaned back on his end of the couch and vanished his own jumper and shirt with a flick of his hand. He was slender but muscular, just like Severus had imagined. He opened the button of his trousers and beckoned Severus closer. Severus' mouth watered at the implication. He sat up as much as the shirt constraining him would allow and more or less let himself fall forwards, towards Potter's crotch.

"If you want my cock, you'll have to get it out," Potter said, not moving a finger to help. 

Severus felt a mixture of arousal and shame wash over him as he shuffled closer, used his teeth to pull down the zip of Potter's trousers and nuzzled his crotch to pull down his briefs. Potter was breathing heavily and watching his progress with half-lidded eyes. When he had succeeded enough to get a first taste of Potter's cock, Potter helped him by sliding his trousers and briefs down a little to give him better access. This time, Potter was not shy about grabbing his hair. Severus concentrated on not choking as Potter used it to set Severus into a rhythm he liked. 

The feel of Potter's cock in his mouth was delicious. Even though Potter seemed to have cleaned up before he had come, Severus tasted the slightly salty, bitter drops of precome and smelled Potter's very own musky scent. Within minutes, Potter was tightening his hand on Severus' neck again and coming with a shudder, keeping Severus down until he had spent himself into his mouth. 

"Merlin, that was good," Potter sighed, helped him up and kissed him again, working his hands between them to open Severus' trousers. He started to rub him through his briefs and stared at him as if deciding what to do next.

"Where's the bedroom?" Potter asked and pinched one of his nipples in time with his rubs. Embarrassingly, it wouldn't take a lot more for Severus to come in his pants like a teenager. 

"Upstairs, left," he answered curtly. 

Potter vanished the shirt restraining him and took his hand. "Show me."

They stood, adjusting their trousers to be able to walk, and climbed the stairs to the master bedroom together. The sunlight was already gone from that side of the manor. Potter lighted the fireplace on the wall facing the large four-poster bed with a flick of his wrist. 

He stepped behind Severus and pulled down his trousers and briefs in one go. He bent down on one knee and Severus felt him lick and kiss along his back and arse cheeks. 

"I want to fuck you," Potter announced. "Can I?"

Severus rolled his eyes. "I don't know, can you?" 

The answer earned him a slap on his bottom, which only made his cock leak in anticipation. He hoped there was more where that had come from. 

"You may," he answered. 

Potter vanished the rest of their clothes and stood in front of him. Severus noticed that Potter's heavy cock was standing red and hard again already. 

"Lie down on your back," Potter ordered, and took off his glasses.

He complied, lay down on his bed, and waited. Potter crawled up to his waist and, finally, took his cock into his mouth. Severus tried not to buck up into his mouth and to hold back a little longer, but Potter's clever little tongue sliding over the head of his cock made it nearly impossible. Severus' hands clenched in the bed sheets as he tried to think of things that would calm him, but seeing the Chosen One's head between his legs, lips sliding up and down his cock, was too much. Within seconds he was coming, spurting into Potter's mouth and, when he pulled off, onto his own stomach.

Potter watched the mess they had made with glittering eyes. 

"Turn over," he commanded and Severus did. He felt Potter climb up his body and sit on his thighs, then touch his back with warm, wet hands. He seemed to have summoned some sort of oil that smelled of lavender and bergamot and was rubbing it deeply into Severus' skin. Severus hadn't expected that. When Potter arrived at his lower back, his cock began to stir again.

Potter's fingers dipped lower until they found his entrance. Reflexively, he spread his legs a little to give him better access. Potter rubbed and pushed a finger against his hole teasingly until Severus was more than ready and impatient.

"If you would be so gracious as to fuck me with your fingers, please," Severus bit out and was rewarded with another slap to his arse cheek. 

"Silence, up there," Potter commanded, but finally slid one finger home, then adding another. When Severus felt he was really, thoroughly, sufficiently stretched, Potter stopped and ordered him to turn over again. 

Severus pulled his legs up and Potter slid between them, coating his cock with whatever he had conjured. He took Severus' hands and guided them over his head, then smiled as Severus felt something coil around them like snakes. It seemed Potter had animated ropes to bind him to the headboard of the bed. 

"God, yes," Severus sighed.

Potter aligned himself with Severus' body and, keeping his eyes on his, slowly slid home in one long thrust. Severus winced at the little discomfort of the first stretch, but soon it ebbed away and he relaxed into Potter's thrusts. 

Potter captured his lips in a hungry kiss, hunting for his tongue, and he kissed back and let himself be ravished by the saviour. The bonds around his wrists held tightly and he had no choice than to submit to him, which was perfect. Potter's deep thrusts hit all the right places and he desperately wished for some friction on his cock. 

Potter was a beautiful sight to behold, with his hair mussed as ever and breathing heavily. The sweat moistening his skin shimmered in the soft light of the fire. He licked a trail down Severus' neck, then bit into his neck lightly. Severus groaned and leaned his head to the side to encourage a repeat. 

"Come for me," Potter whispered and bit down again, harder, while at the same time hitting Severus' prostate. Severus felt hot threads of pleasure shoot from his stomach straight to his cock and he was coming again, spilling his semen onto Potter. 

The contractions in his arse pulled Potter over the edge and he thrust into Severus one last time before throwing his head back and freezing. Severus felt his come filling him and, when Potter pulled out, running down his thighs. Potter waved his hands to free him of the ropes and fell down next to him. He threw one leg over Severus', one arm over his stomach, and pressed a kiss to his shoulder. From the way he wordlessly levitated the duvet up and let it settle over them, Severus gathered that he intended to stay a bit, and Severus approved.

*

The Ministry didn't hold a ceremony for the successful completion of a parole, and Kate thought Snape was probably glad of that. His last appointment had been a mere formality; they had been drinking tea and talking about Snape's owl order business. Their meetings had become something Kate looked forward to and she was a little sad that they had ended now. But she was happy for Snape. He had looked much more relaxed than she had ever seen him. The end of his parole was sure to be a factor in that, as well as the love bite Kate thought she had spied at the edge of his collar and the presence of one not so sneaky colleague that had been waiting in front of Kate's office for him. 

Kate shut Snape's case file, stamped "closed" on the front and sent it to the archive. A new part of Snape's life could begin.

**Author's Note:**

> Please leave a comment here or at [LiveJournal](https://snape-potter.livejournal.com/3871819.html), [Insanejournal](http://asylums.insanejournal.com/snape_potter/1802097.html), or [Dreamwidth](https://snape-potter.dreamwidth.org/1127092.html).


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